"Geh—Fox-type Housewife!?"
Standing at the entrance of Kuro's residence, Osakabehime froze the moment she opened the door and found Tamamo standing there.
Her entire body stiffened.
A bead of cold sweat slowly rolled down her temple as her eyes met the fox woman's gentle smile.
Tamamo tilted her head slightly.
"Ara~," she said softly. "What an amusing sight. A hikikomori kindly opening the door for me."
Her voice was warm and friendly.
Which only made Osakabehime even more nervous.
There was a reason Tamamo had immediately recognized some of her habits. One of Tamamo's other incarnations had interacted with Osakabehime before.
As a Divided Divine Spirit originating from Amaterasu, Tamamo had access to knowledge shared through that spiritual connection.
As long as she took a moment to think about it, the information she needed would usually come to her naturally.
And unfortunately for Osakabehime, that meant her identity as a hikikomori had practically been exposed from the very first second they met.
Tamamo's gaze slowly lowered, and her nose twitched slightly as if catching a scent lingering in the air.
A few seconds later, her brows knit together faintly. She had picked up a subtle masculine scent still lingering on Osakabehime, and immediately understood.
"Oh?" she murmured with eyes narrowed playful amusement. "It seems you've had some fun with Master as well?"
Osakabehime immediately turned her face away.
Her cheeks began to redden.
Because unfortunately, Tamamo wasn't entirely wrong.
About three hours ago, she had indeed spent some intimate time with Kuro. And honestly, she had enjoyed it very much. Though thinking back on it now, it still felt a little unsatisfying. That realization only made her face burn even hotter.
Seeing her reaction, Tamamo's smile deepened slightly.
"My, my..." she said quietly. "You look like a woman who just secretly stole someone else's husband."
Osakabehime immediately jolted.
"W-Wait! That's—"
"Fufu~"
Tamamo giggled softly.
The sound was gentle and warm.
Yet somehow it only made Osakabehime's shoulders grow even stiffer.
"You don't need to panic so much," Tamamo whispered as she took a small step closer.
A faint sweet fragrance—something like flowers mixed with a trace of incense—drifted into Osakabehime's senses, causing her face to grow even warmer.
"I know Master's personality quite well," Tamamo continued gently. "So something like this doesn't really surprise me."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
She wasn't angry.
Nor was she truly jealous.
If anything, her smile seemed far too calm—far too mature—as though she fully understood the kind of man they were talking about.
A few seconds later, however, Tamamo let out a small sigh.
"Even so..."
Her golden eyes slowly drifted downward.
To Osakabehime's neck.
To a faint mark that was almost impossible to notice.
The corner of Tamamo's lips curled upward teasingly.
"Seeing a hikikomori secretly enjoying her time with Master before me is still a little irritating."
"Ugh—!?"
Osakabehime reflexively took half a step back.
Her face instantly turned bright red.
Meanwhile, Tamamo's smile only became sweeter.
"Fufu~," she laughed softly behind her hand. "And judging by your expression... it seems you really enjoyed Master's attention, didn't you?"
Before Osakabehime could even respond, an orange ring of light suddenly opened in the yard not far from the entrance.
The air trembled faintly.
"Why are you two outside?"
The familiar voice immediately caused both Tamamo and Osakabehime to turn around.
Kuro stepped out from the portal with his usual calm expression.
And in his arms was a small white-haired girl with ruby-red eyes.
Her tiny body was wrapped in a white winter coat, while her long silver hair swayed gently in the night breeze.
Overall, she looked remarkably similar to a small rabbit.
A brief silence descended.
Tamamo and Osakabehime's expressions became completely flat at the exact same time.
Like two people who had just witnessed a criminal returning home with a new victim.
"Ma-chan..." Osakabehime said flatly and pointed at the girl in Kuro's arms. "Whose child did you kidnap at this hour?"
Tamamo smile, but her eyes had become noticeably colder.
"Dear Husband..." she said softly, in a tone that somehow sounded dangerous. "I know your tastes are rather broad..." Her gaze dropped toward the little girl. "…but even I am beginning to worry if your targets have started becoming children."
"Oi."
Kuro immediately let out a long sigh.
"Her name is Illya," he said calmly while adjusting her position in his arms. "And I didn't kidnap her. I brought her home from her castle."
Then he looked down at the girl.
"Illya," he said flatly. "Please explain that I didn't kidnap you. I've already won the Grail War, so claiming the reward isn't wrong."
Illya blinked.
Then she turned toward Tamamo and Osakabehime with an innocent expression.
"...He's lying."
"Eh."
"Onii-san hasn't actually won the Holy Grail War yet," Illya continued without hesitation. "And forcibly bringing a little girl home is still called kidnapping."
She pointed at Kuro with a completely innocent face.
"Especially when Onii-san invaded my castle in the middle of the night, defeated Berserker and both of my servants, and then carried me away."
She paused dramatically before adding,
"And I am the poor victim who couldn't even resist an adult."
Osakabehime stared at Kuro with lifeless eyes.
"…Ma-chan."
Tamamo smiled very gently.
Far too gently.
"Ara~"
Her fox tails swayed slowly behind her.
"So my husband has finally evolved into a full-fledged criminal, has he?"
Kuro sighed again, even longer than before.
For some reason, he felt these three girls could become perfectly united whenever it came to things like this.
Even though he was fairly certain this was their first meeting.
"Why do you all immediately assume I'm a criminal...?" he muttered while rubbing his temple. "A person's hard work really goes unappreciated."
Then he looked at them one by one.
"And what are you doing outside?" he asked. "Why aren't you chatting inside?"
Tamamo lightly brushed back a strand of her hair.
"I only arrived at your house about five minutes ago," she replied. "I chatted with that hikikomori for a bit, and then Master arrived."
A brief silence followed.
Kuro frowned slightly as he looked at Tamamo.
"You just arrived?" he repeated. "How? Weren't you with Kama? Did the two of you go sightseeing first?"
He paused.
His gaze drifted around the yard as if searching for someone.
"And speaking of which, where's Kama?" he asked. "Wasn't she supposed to escort you here?"
Tamamo smiled faintly.
"I was abandoned."
Kuro's eyes widened slightly.
"…Abandoned?" he repeated.
Then he let out another long sigh.
"I see," he said at last. "I'll punish her later."
After saying that, Kuro walked toward the front door.
"We should go inside first."
Tamamo and Osakabehime followed behind him without further complaint.
Meanwhile, the orange portal behind Kuro slowly closed and disappeared without leaving a single trace behind.
***
Some time had passed.
Inside the dark and silent room, Kuro lay on his bed beneath the covers, his breathing calm after finishing several things that night.
First, he had given Kama what he considered an appropriate punishment—room confinement.
Second, as Servants, Tamamo and Osakabehime did not truly require sleep. For the time being, they chose to remain in Astral form.
Besides, the furniture Osakabehime had purchased would only arrive tomorrow morning or afternoon, leaving the shut-in girl with practically nothing to do tonight.
Third, Kuro temporarily moved Illya into Yuki's room.
Meanwhile, Sella and Leysritt remained inside the Gate of Babylon since every room in the house was already occupied.
Tomorrow, Kuro planned to buy a new house.
And perhaps several plots of land as well.
At the very least, after all of that, he managed to fall into a fairly deep sleep, until something disturbed the quiet beneath the blanket.
Kuro's brow twitched slightly.
His eyes slowly opened, staring at the dark ceiling for several seconds before his focus gradually returned.
There was a strange sensation.
Warm.
Slow.
Yet slick and patient, like a serpent discovering its favorite branch in the middle of the night before silently coiling around it.
Kuro lifted the blanket, and instantly, his pupils widened.
Tamamo, Kama and Osakabehime
The three of them were far too close.
The thin boundary between them had nearly vanished completely, while the subtle movements beneath the blanket felt like small serpents slowly climbing toward the top of a tree, savoring their prey before finally devouring it.
Kama was the first to stop.
She turned toward Kuro with her usual sweet smile—a smile far too calm for someone who had just been caught red-handed.
"Ara~" she said softly. "Master-san is awake already?"
Kuro stared at them in silence for several long seconds.
Then let out a long, heavy sigh.
"Of course I'm awake," he replied flatly. "That's only natural."